Jessica Potter and the Year of Great Sorrow
Chapter 2- The Hogwarts Express

Let me start by telling you that it was definitely an interesting day. To start it off, Mum and Dad, along with my three favorite brats, took me to Hogwarts. Mum fussed the whole way there. She kept asking me if I had remembered to pack all of my school supplies, and then she reminded me not to get into too much trouble. She reminded me of all sorts of rules.

"Don't wander around at night! You'll always get caught. And don't you dare go near the forest, Jessica Lillian Potter! You better not have any Dungbombs or fireworks in your trunk, because you WON'T be using them, of course," Mum reminded me.

"'Mione, she knows the rules," Dad reminded her.

"Oh, Harry, you remember all the trouble that we got into, I just want Jessica to be better than that," Mum said.

"That's what Albus is for," I muttered darkly.

"What did you say, young lady?" Mum asked, turning on me angrily.

"Nothing," I said quickly, and Mum took Albus and the twins with her through the barrier, leaving me and Dad with my stuff.

"I agree with you," he said with a mischievous grin. I smiled back. I love my dad. He understands me perfectly.

"Did you pack the cloak that I gave you?" he asked me in a whisper as we walked through the barrier between Platforms 9 and 10.

"Yep. It's in the secret compartment of my trunk, with my fireworks, my Dungbombs, the Marauder's map, and my broom," I said with a grin. Dad had helped me install the magical compartment of my trunk so that only I could get into it. Mum would never know that it was there.

"Which you won't be using," Dad reminded me.

"Which part won't I be using?" I asked himinnocently, though I already knew what he was going to say. First years weren't allowed to have brooms.

"The broom. You know I don't mean to sound like your Mum, but you only have the broom in case you ABSOLUTELY need it. No joy rides," Dad reminded me.

"Fine, fine. I won't use it-this year. But next year you can bet that I'll be trying out for Quidditch," I said.

"You'd better be trying out for Quidditch, Jess. You can't let me down. You're the only one of my kids with talent," he said with a laugh. I smiled. Albus refused to fly, and the few times that he had been on a broom he had fallen off. Sirius and Melissa were decent flyers for seven year olds, but they had no control and they lived to whack the Bludgers all over the place. They weren't like Dad and I. That was one of the many things that I had gained from my dad-his talent as a Quidditch Seeker. Dad says that I'm good, and that I have a lot of talent. I hope he's right. I love Quidditch.

We were inside of the barrier at this point. Sirius and Melissa were now running around the platform with Kim and Kev Weasley. Mum looked majorly peeved. Albus was talking to Jenny Weasley, who was grinning happily. It looked like Robert was right-Jenny certainly acted like she had a crush on my brother.

Dad and I loaded my stuff onto the train, and then we went back onto the platform. After all, there was still about twenty minutes until the train was to leave. Sirius Black, Jordan's dad, came over to talk to Dad. I quickly made an excuse to leave, and I wandered over to where Jordan. She was with her friends from her year. I had only met one of them before, Gabby Bernstein. She had been Jordan's best friend at Hogwarts last year, and I had met her during the holidays when she had come to stay with the Blacks.

"Jess!" Jordan squealed when she saw me.

"Hey, Jordie," I replied, smiling at her.

"Guys, this is Jessica Potter, the one I've been telling you about. Jess, you already know Gab, this is Gin-Virgina O'Connell-and this is Ryan O'Casey," she said, pointing to the blond girl and the boy with the light brown hair. They smiled at me.

"Any friend of Jordan's is a friend of ours," Virginia said, shaking my hand as well. They seemed nice, but I wished that I could find some of my friends. So far the only people I saw were Alex Weasley and Neil Longbottom, and I didn't really feel like talking to them. Jenny was still talking to Albus, and I wondered where Robert was. I hadn't gotten a chance to really talk to him in ages. I had seen him in Diagon Alley three days ago, but it had only been briefly. I hadn't even talked to him-we'd just waved from across the street. He had been with James, Neil, Alex, and Cameron, and I had been with Sandy, Molly, and Sara. Robert later wrote and said that he had tried to come talk to us, but the other guys had made him go with them to Quality Quidditch Supplies while we were in Flourish and Blotts. I had a feeling that he had wanted to talk to us because of Molly, and not because of me as he had claimed, but I hadn't bothered to write him back and tell him so.

Finally, the twenty minutes was over, and I gave my Mum and Dad hugs before I got on the train. Albus ignored me, but Sirius and Melissa shot off a Fillibuster Firework right on the platform. Mum started to yell at them, but they claimed that they had only wanted to give their sister a proper farewell. I looked out the train window once I was on board. Mum still looked peeved at Sirius and Lissy. I laughed at the sight. Albus was also glaring at them in disapproval, but Dad was beaming. Jordan asked me if I wanted to sit with her and her friends, but I told her that I would find my friends, so I ended up in a compartment at the back, looking out the window.

"Nice Fireworks display the twins gave you, Potter," a voice said behind me. I turned around and saw red hair, blue eyes, and freckles.

"Robert!" I shrieked. He and I closed the gap of five feet between us, and I threw my arms around him. He seemed a little surprised at first, but then he returned the hug. We were best friends, after all, and we hadn't seen each other all summer.

"Oh! I'm so glad I found you guys, so far I hadn't seen anyone else that I knew besides Jordan and her friends," Molly Thomas said. Robert quickly broke our hug, and he whirled around to face Molly.

"Hi, Molly," he said awkwardly.

"You're eleven," I muttered under my breath so that only Robert could hear me. He shook his head slightly, never taking his eyes off of Molly. Her dark brown hair hung down her back in a long braid, and her dark brown eyes were wide with excitement.

"Hey, Mollz!" I said enthusiastically.

"Oh, Jess, I'm SO excited!" Molly said, grinning at me. Molly took the seat next to me, and Robert sat across from us.

"I know! I really hope that we end up in Gryffindor," I said.

"I don't see why we wouldn't, I mean, all of our parents were in Gryffindor, but I guess you never know for sure, right? I suppose we can't ALL be in Gryffindor. It'll be so odd, though, if we end up in different houses. I mean, all of us have been raised together!" Molly said.

"I wouldn't mind if Alex were in a different house. Or James," Robert muttered darkly.

"They're your cousins, why wouldn't you want them to be in the same house as you, RObert?" Molly asked, alarmed.

"I dunno. James and I get on each others nerves at times. And, well, Alex is a bit of an insufferable know it all," Robert said.

"Reminds me of my brother," I said.

"Well, James ought to be in Gryffindor. There's no reason that he wouldn't be," Molly said.

"Alex could end up in a different house, his Mum was a Ravenclaw," I pointed out.

"Nope. They're my cousins. I'm forced to like them. Jess and Cameron are my best friends," Robert said.

"What about me?" Cameron Wood asked as he came into the compartment, along with Sara Weasley, Sandy Finnigan and James.

"Hey, Cam," Robert said as the four of them sat down.

"We've been looking for you three. We were in a compartment further up with Neil, Alex and the triplets, but we decided that they would drive us crazy by the end of the day. Dad told me that this is gonna be a LONG ride," Cameron said.

"Yeah, I've heard as much," Molly said with a laugh. We rearranged the seats now that they had joined us. Molly ended up between Sara and James on one side, while Cameron, Robert, Sandy and I sat on the other side.

"So, what's been happening with you guys?" I asked, trying to make conversation.

"Lord, Jess, you missed an excellent World Cup. I can't believe that your Mum wouldn't let you come," Cameron said to me.

"Gee, thanks for reminding me, Cam," I said darkly.

"She was sick," Molly said.

"Yeah, Jess, there'll be other World Cups," Sandy said helpfully. I tried to smile, but the memory of missing the World Cup still made me seethe with anger.

"You didn't miss much. It wasn't that great, no matter what Cameron tells you. He just thinks it was cool to see his Dad play against his Mum. We've definitely seen better," Robert whispered in my ear.

"Thanks, Rob," I said.

"Hey, you guys, I was wondering if your parents have heard anything lately about Amadeus? I mean, that you know of," Sara said. Everyone in the compartment shuddered at the mention of Amadeus. Amadeus was the son of Lord Voldemort. Although Dad had defeated Voldemort years ago, before I was even born, not all of the Dark Lord's supporters had been punished. Those that had been left to roam free had chosen instead to follow Voldemort's son, Amadeus. Although Amadeus wasn't very well known yet, he had begun to gain power at a steady rate. My parents and their friends had been trying very hard to stop him, but so far they had not accomplished much. Amadeus had gained many new supporters, supporters that his father had not had. These supporters were harder to stop because they were totally unknown to the members of the Order of Phoenix.

"No," I said quickly when I realized that all their eyes were on me. My friends had not been quick to forget the first attack that Amadeus had ever made. Amadeus and a few of his supporters had attacked Dad and I when we were on our way home from a Quidditch match. Nothing bad had happened, but I'll admit that it did freak me out a little. I'm not as brave as Dad, but I suppose that has something to do with the factthat Dad fought Voldemort all his life. Amadeus doesn't even compare to his Dad, but that's okay because I don't exactly compare to mine. All the wizarding world expects me to become some big hero just like my dad, but I just don't see it happening. Sara had told me quite a while ago about all of this, and I suppose that might have something to do with Mum's over-protectiveness.

"Jess, he's getting more powerful," Sandy said.

"So? What does any of that have to do with me?" I asked.

"Well, with your dad and all....." Sara began.

"I'm not my dad," I pointed out.

"And Amadeus isn't his," James said.

"Jessica, you know that your family is bound to be one of Amadeus' targets. Your dad has fought his war, this is our war," Sara said.

"We're eleven," I said angrily.

"She uses that excuse a lot," Robert said with a grin.

"Your dad was only ONE when he defeated Voldemort for the first time," Cameron pointed out. I looked to Robert for help. He understood that I hated talking about Amadeus' even more than I hated having the attention on me. That made this conversaton particularly bad, as it was both about Amadeus AND me. Robert caught my gaze, and he spoke.

"So, what subject are you guys looking forward to most?" he asked.

"Defense Against the Dark Arts, of course," Sandy said with a wicked grin.

"Isn't it great?" he asked me happily. I felt so much like smacking him. Rob may be one of my best friends, but he honestly drives me crazy sometimes.

We talked a bit longer about what classes we were most looking forward to, and then the topic changed to Quidditch. About midway through the day, a friendly lady pushed a cart through out compartment.

"Would you like anything to eat?" she asked us, smiling broadly. We each bought a pack of Chocolate Frogs, and we bought a couple of bags of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans to split between us.

"I think I've found a bogey flavored one," Cameron said as he bit into a green one. I laughed, and I picked up a red one. To my relief, it was cherry.

"Aagh! Sardines," Robert said. He spit the bean out onto the floor of the train. Everyone laughed at him.

"It's not funny, it's disgusting. They shouldn't sell these things," he said angrily, and he looked around for something to drink. Finally, he took out a Chocolate Frog to get rid of the sardine flavor.

"Hey, look, I got your dad's card, Jess," Robert said. I looked at the card he was holding. Sure enough, there was a picture of my dad, smiling. His black hair was messy, as usual, and it was sticking up in all kinds of odd directions. His green eyes were framed with his glasses, and the lightning bolt scar on his forehead was mostly covered by his bangs. I had heard about this card from my dad, who had been reluctant to let the company use him on one of their cards. It was very rare, and I had never actually seen one before.

"Harry Potter-Head of the Auror Division of the Ministry of Magic," Robert read aloud.

"Harry Potter is considered the savior of the modern wizarding world. He is best known for his numerous battles against the Dark Lord Voldemort, the most feared Dark Wizard ever, who he ultimately defeated when he was seventeen years old," Cameron read. I grinned. Dad had never seen one of these cards, and I was sure that when he did see it he would hate it. Dad had never liked having the attention drawn to him.

"Robert, can I have that?" I asked him.

"Aw, Jess, I need it for my collection," he whined.

"It's her father, for Pete's sake," Molly said.

"Shouldn't you already have a ton of these?" Robert asked. I shook my head.

"Oh, fine," he said reluctantly.

For a while longer, we continued to eat Every Flavor Beans and Chocolate Frogs. We came across some more interesting bean flavors, including grass and earwax. We also came across a few more cards of people that we recognized. We found the card for Albus DUmbledore, and for Sirius Black and Severus Snape.

"Dad says to expect trouble from Snape in Potions," Robert said when we came across the card.

"Yeah, apparently he hates ALL Gryffindors," Molly said.

"And all Weasleys," Sara added.

"He'll probably hate ME the most," I pointed out.

"Yeah, Dad told me about how much he loathed your Grandad, and how that wore off on his opinion of your Dad. I expect it'll wear off on you, too," Robert said. Just then, the compartment door slid open and in walked a girl with brown hair and blue eyes. She was short, and not exactly thin. She looked like the type of person who would be shy.

"Oh. Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you," she said.

"You're not disturbing anyone," Molly said, being friendly as usual.

"I'm Amy. Amy Holmes," she said.

"Nice to meet you, Amy. I'm Molly Thomas," Molly said, and shook the girl's hand. Next, Cameron, Sandy, Sara, and James introduced themselves and shook her hand. When I introduced myself, however, the girl stared at me in awe.

"Potter? As in HARRY Potter?" she asked me in awe.

"Yeah, Harry Potter," I said, grinning.

"Wow! But you're like famous!" she exclaimed.

"Jess isn't famous, her Dad is," Robert muttered darkly. He hated it when I got attention. It wasn't really fair of him, he always blamed me, but it's not my fault that I am who I am, and that my Dad is who he is. Robert knows that Dad and I both would prefer no attention at all, and it always hurts my attention when he gets mad at me. Dad says that RObert gets it from his Dad, and that Ron Weasley was like that when he was at Hogwarts. He said that Ron was always jealous of hime because Ron had never gotten a lot of attention, coming from a big family, and Dad was always the center of it.

"And who are you?" Amy said, turning to him.

"Robert Weasley," he said coldly. Amy extended her hand, but Robert did not take it. I shot hima warning glance, but he ignored me. Amy looked at him, and then she quickly made an excuse to leave.

"Robert Charles Weasley! You could have at least tried to be nice? What's wrong with you?" I asked him.

"I didn't like her," he replied. I hadn't exactly liked her, but I had at least been nice to her.

"That's no excuse," I said.

"Why didn't you like her? She seemed nice," Molly said.

"I just didn't, okay? She seemed fake, all bubbly and like," Robert said.

"Fine. Whatever," Molly said.

"Molly's bubbly," I hissed to him, "But you don't seem to mind her."

"Molly's different. She's Molly," he replied.

"What do you two keep whispering about?" Cameron asked us.

"Nothing," Robert said quickly.

The rest of the day, and the rest of the train ride, passed very quickly. Before we knew it, we had pulled into Hogsmeade Station. Dark had fallen as we got off of the train.